Welding rod



Patented May 16, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,158,984 WELDING non Arthur R. Lytle'and Thomas'H. Vaughn, Niagara Falls, N. Y., assignors to Oxw'eld Acetylene Company, a corporation of WeStVirginia N Drawing. Application May 13, 1938,

. sci-mm. 201,717.

8 Claims. (c1. zit-s) This invention relates to welding rods for fu- -sion deposition welding by electric arc and oxy- Ben-gas methods. This application is in part. a

m lar form. For instance, most of such operations require the use of inorganic fluxes to dissolve the v metal oxides which otherwise would interfere with the production of a sound, strong weld. In gas welding procedures, the flux is usually ,applied by dipping thehot end of the welding rod into the flux, whereupon a small amount of flux adheres to the hot rod and is thereby conveyed to the welding puddle. This method of using flux has several disadvantages: it wastes flux and time, it is inconvenient, the supply of flux is uneven and frequently insuflicient, and the weld is non-uniform in appearance and strength. Sometimes the flux is madeinto a paste with water and applied to the entire rod, and sometimes the entire rod is heated and rolled in flux to produce-a rough and uneven coating; but these expedients .do not "provide a strong, adherent, uniform coating which will withstand handling or shipment. Arc Weldingelectrodes are usually coated with a flux held in place with a fabric or a binder such as sodium silicate.-

A practice thatis increasing in popularity is to'introduce alloying elements 'into' the weld by 35 coating a ductile metal welding rod with comvminuted metals or alloys. In this manner such elements as chromium, tungstemmanganese, and silicon may be added to the weld puddle. Sometimes a mixture of a reducible compound of the desired metalwith a reducing agent is usedin- I stead of the metal itself. Such coatings frequently contain, also, cleansing, scavenging, and deoxidizing agents. The types of materials discussed above are hereinafter referred to 001- lectively as weld modifying substances.

The problem of providing a wholly satisfactory coating'of weld modifying substances on awelding rod, for either electric arc or gas welding, is primarily a problem of-providing a suitable bind- 50 er. The binder must either completely disappear during welding without adversely afiecting the weldingor leaving a. charred residue or producpleted weld. Furthermore, the binder must not interfere with' the action of the flux; it must cling tenaciously to the welding rod despite rough handling and wide changes in temperature; it

must be flexible, tough, and water resistant; it

must not lose its toughness or adherence during storage or moderate exposure to weathering; and

it must be capable of binding the desired amount of material to the rod. If the rod is to be used for arc welding, the binder must not adversely affect arc stability. We have tested numerous binding materials, both organic and inorganic, and have found that most materials fail to meet one or more of these requirements. 5

We have discovered that certain thermoplastic 1 synthetic resins may be used successfully as binders for coating welding rods with solid subdivided weld modifying substances. Specifically, resins formed by the polymerization of vinyl compounds or acrylic compounds are suitable. Preferred polymerized compounds include polyvinyl halides; polyvinyl esters of aliphatic acids, and their mixtures or conjoint polymers with polyvinyl halides;

polystyrene; partialpolyvinyl acetal resins, and especially those acetalized with aliphatic aldehydes having from two to six carbon atoms; and polymerized esters of acrylic acid or its derivatives or mixtures thereof.

The invention accordingly includes a welding rod comprising a metal core provided with a. coating comprising at least one comminuted solid weld modifying substance and a.binder containing essentially a thermoplastic resin selected from the group consisting of polyvinyl halides, polyvinyl esters of aliphatic acids, polystyrene, and polymerized esters of acrylic acid and its homologues. Coatings according to our invention may be prepared and. applied to welding rods in a number of ways. For example, a rod coated with 0 weld modifying substance may be] covered with a film of -resin, or the rod may be dipped into a mixture of weld modifying substance with a solution of the resin in a suitable solvent and the solvent then evaporated; or a paste of a resin, a solvent, and a weld modifying substance, may be prepared and applied to the rod by brushing or dipping; or, preferably, a mixture of thermoplastic resin, solvent, and weld modifying substance is,-extruded over the rods. Thefollowing specific examples include a number of procedures typical of those which we have employed successfully, but our invention is not limited to these examples. In all examples, proportions are given in parts by weight unless otherwise indicated.

, substance in six parts of acetone.

Example 1.+-Bronze welding rods were coated with a flux mixture, consisting of 1.8 parts of fused borax and 82 parts of boric acid, by warm- Example 2.--A solution of polyvinyl acetate.

resin was prepared by dissolving one part oil this Three hundred parts ofthis solutionwas well mixed with 266 parts of flux mixture 18% borax-82% boric acid and parts each of methyl isobutyl ketone and methyl amyl ketone. This mixture of flux, binder, and solvent was ground in a ball mill for a period of about eight hours. Bronze rods were coated with the material by dipping. Welds made with these coated rods were entirely satisfactory from every point of view.

' Example 3.--Thirty parts of an aluminum flux (23' parts KC], 23 parts NaCl, 4 parts LiF) were mixed with ten parts each of methyl isobutyl ketone and methyl amyl ketone This mixture was stirred into thirty parts of a polyvinyl acetate solution containing one part of polyvinyl acetate resin to each six part of acetone. Aluminum rods were coated with this composition by dipping, and them'aterial adhering to the rod was dried, forming a tough, flexible coating. Welding tests proved that the fluxing action of rods coated in this manner is entirely satisfactory. A dark deposit left on the weld is easily removable with water and is not objectionable in any way.

Example 4.-A solution was prepared consisting of thirty'parts of methyl alcohol and four parts of a partial polyvinyl acetal resin acetalized with butyraldehyde. Thirty parts of this solution was mixed with-forty-flve parts of aluminum flux (23 parts KC], 23 parts NaCl, 4 parts HF) and forty-flve parts of isobutyl alcohol, and the mixture ground'in a ball mill for seven hours.

The balls were removed by screening, and 2.5

parts of water were added to each 94.5 parts 01 the mixture. Aluminum welding rods (0.25 inch diameter) were coated with this mixture by dipping, and the coatings were found to be'extremely flexible, waterproof, and highly resistant to abrasion. The welding properties ofthe coated rods were excellent.

Example 5. A composition consisting of '10 parts of a 20% solution of polymerized acrylic acid ester in ethylene dichloride (trade name? Acryloid 3-7), 30 parts of propylene dichloride,

18 parts of methyl isobutyl ketone, 0.94 part of dibutyl phthalate, 49.2 parts of boric acid, and

20.4 parts of borax (NBaBiOLlOHrO) was ground in a porcelain-lined ball mill with porcelain balls. Bronze rods were dipped into the coating composition and slowly withdrawn. The coating formed on drying the material adhering to the. rod was extremely flexible and securely adherent.

The welding and fluxing properties of a rod so treated were quite satisfactory.

Example .6.--A partial polyvinyl .acetab. resin acetalized with butyraldehyde to about 10% acetalization was dissolved in methyl alcohol and mixed with an approximately equal weight of, a

flux'containing 88% sodium borosilicate and 12% lithium 'fluo'ride. The viscosity of the solution was adiusted by adding butyl alcohol until a coating 0.35 mm. thick was produced on 54 inch cobalt-chromium-tungsten alloy rods by dipping. The physical properties of coatings so prepared were good and the weldinpproperties of the coated rods were excellent. v 5

Example 7.-22.5 parts of a 20% solution of polymerized acrylic acid ester in ethylene dichloride .(trade name: Acryloid 3-7) were thoroughly mixed with parts of high carbon ferrochromium, 31.5 parts -of medium carbon 10 ferro-manganese, 4.5 parts of manganesetitanium alloy, and 4.5 parts of coke flour; Steel core wire was coated with this mixture by extrusion, the coating. amounting to between 20% and 85% of the-weight of the coated rod. The 15 coated rod was successfully used as an electric welding electrode to deposit a wear-resistant layer of chromium-manganese steel on a mild steel base.

Example 8.-7.5 parts of a methyl methacry- 20 late polymer (trade name:. Lucite) dissolved in about 15 parts of trichlorethylene (or acetone) was substituted for the Acryloid B-7", and 4.5 parts of ferrotltanium may be substituted for I the manganese-titanium, of example I, withgut 25 substantially changing the results.

Example grfi-7-5 to 9 parts of polyvinyl acetate dissolved in about 15 parts of trichlorethylene (or acetone) .were mixed with 105 parts of high carbon f'errochromium, 30 parts of medium car- 30 bon ferromanganese, 4.5 parts of ferrotitanium, and 4.5 parts of coke flour. The mixture was applied to mild steel core wires by extrusion and the coated wires were successfully used as arc welding electrodes. 35

Example 10.6 parts .of ferrosilicon (about 50% Si, 50% Fe) were substituted for the ferrotitanium. and coke flour in the mixture of example 9, and the resulting mixture was coated onto mild steel wire in an amount between 20% and 40 .35% of the weight of the coated wire. The

Suitable plasticizers may be used to increase the 50 toughness and flexibility of the coat. Welding with the rods treated according to our invention has numerous advantages over. the method heretofore used of applying flux to the weld by dipping the hot, uncoated welding rod 55 into a supply of flux. The use of rods coated with flux is more convenient, faster, and provides welds of a uniform appearanceand oi. uniform and improved physical properties. I Using bronze rods of identical compositions, it was observed 5 experimentally that six welds made with gas welding by the method of dipping the hot bare rod .in flux had ultimate tensile strengths varying from 38,200 to 60,900 pounds per square inch, whereas flve welds made with rods coated, ac- 5 cording "to'this invention had ultimate tensile. strengths varying from 66,600 to 67,500 pounds 'per square inch. Half of the welds made by the dip method broke in the weld scarf, while all but ones of the welds made with the coated 70 rods broke in the steel plate. I

A preferred binder for use on aluminum and aluminum-base alloy welding rods for gas welding is a partial polyvinyl acetal resin acetalized with one of the group consisting of propionalde- 76 hyde'between 52% m 92%. butyraldehyde be- .tween 42% and 82%, and valeraldehyde between 38% and 62%. Solutions of polyvinyl acetal resins cannot successfully be used with fluxes jcontaining boron compounds, because such compounds tend to-precipitate the resin. For copper and copper-base alloy welding rods the preferred. binder is polymerized ester of acrylic acid and its'homologuu.

In addition-to the resins mentioned specifically above, any thermoplastic solid ruin formed by the polymerization, condensation, or reaction of styrene, phenyl, acrylic, aldehyde. hetone, and alkyd types may be used as a binder, provided,

essential characteristic-of burning slowly in a welding flame without yielding disagreeable fumes i or odors and without depositing a char that inter 2 feres'with the weldin'g'operation.

' Weclaim: V I

1. Welding rod comprising a metal core and i an adherent coating thereon, such coating cornf prising a solid weld modifying substance and a a thermoplastic selected from the group consisting of polyvinyl halides; polyvinyl-esters of aliphatic. acids, polystyrene, and polymerized esters of acrylic acid and. its homoiogues; which resin burns slowly in a welding .ilame without le fumes orodors and without depositing a char that would interfere-with the welding operation. v

s. Weldingnodas'definedinolaim Linwhich the coating comprises solid inorganic weld {Ewe one or more compounds of the acetylene, vinyl,

of course,'that the resin has the above-describedhaving two to six carbon atoms.

5. Welding rod as defined in claim 1, in which the coating comprises a solid inorganic weld modifying substance and a partial polyvinyl acetal resin 'acetalised with propionaldehyde between 52 and 92%, butyraldehyde between 42% and 82%, and valeraldehyde between 83% and 62%.

6. Welding rod comprising a metalcore andan adherent coating essentiall'yincludingasolld inorganic welding flux and a resin formedby the polymerization of at leastone ester selected from the groupconsistingoftheestersofacryiioacid and its homologues;

7. Welding red as defined in'claim 6, in which the resin is a polymerized methyl methacrylate.

8.Welding rod'comprising a metal core and an adherent coating thereon e-entially includin m orlanlc-welding flu'xandac resin formed from at least one compound of the acetylene, vinyl, styrene. phenolic,'acrylic, alde-' hyde, ketone, and alkyd types; which resin burns slowlyinaweldingnamewlthoutyieldimdibagreeablefumaorodorsandwithoutdeposlting a char that interferes with the welding operation. v

g ARTHURRLY'III. 'rnoms H. VAUGHN. 

